Strawberry Lemon Cookies
I saw some adorable ombré cookies in Pinterest recently and was so in love with how perfect they were for Valentine’s Day. Freeze dried berries are one of my favorite secret ingredients for flavoring/coloring baked goods, and I knew they would make the most gorgeous pink frosting, a bit tricky to find but worth it if you can. I crushed them into a powder and added it gradually to the frosting, decorating a few, and then adding more powder until the graduated color affect was accomplished.
In terms of sugar cookie cut outs, this recipe is my favorite. It’s from Bake at 350, the queen of sugar cookies, and I’ve made it several times. This version has lemon zest mixed into the sugar which releases all the oils and makes the lemon flavor shine. The dough requires no chilling ahead of time, and this whole project was done in just about an hour. Not bad right? I’m all about, the easier the better!
Ingredients needed for Lemon Raspberry Cookies:
All-purpose flour
Baking powder
Sugar
Butter
Egg
Vanilla extract
Fresh lemon juice and zest
Supplies needed to make the cookies!
Large bowl
Electric Mixer
Airtight Container
Wire Rack
Parchment Paper
Offset Spatula for frosting
Mesh Sieve
Hand mixer or stand mixer
How to make Stawberry Lemon Cookies:
Combine flour with baking powder and set aside. Mix the sugar and lemon zest in the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or a large mixing bowl. Use your hands to work the zest into the sugar, releasing the oils. Add the butter, and use an electric or stand mixer to cream until fluffy. Add the egg, vanilla, and lemon juice to the butter mixture and mix until creamy and well mixed. Scrape the sides of the bowl and then add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, mixing on low speed until combined. Cookie dough will be crumbly. Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead until the dough comes together. Roll dough to 1/4 inch thickness and cut out using cookie cutters. Place cut out cookies on a prepared baking sheet 1-2 inches apart and freeze for 5 minutes before baking.
Bake cookies 10-12 minutes. Allow to cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes and then move to a cooling rack.
When the cookies are room temperature frost using a spoon or offset spatula. Cookies last at room temperature for 2-3 days in a sealed container or up to a week in the fridge.
How to make Freeze Dried Strawberry Frosting:
The reason I love using freeze dried berries for this recipe is that you can create a powder which doesn’t make the frosting runny like if you had used fresh or frozen strawberries.
The frosting has an extra burst of sweetness of strawberriws as well as a bright natural pink coloring.
To use, cream butter until fluffy and then add the powdered sugar and strawberry powder. Add milk or cream until frosting is creamy but can still hold shape. Spread frosting onto cooled cookies.
Ingredients
For the Cookies:
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup sugar
2 sticks (salted) butter, cold & cut into small chunks
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
zest and juice of 1 lemon
For the Frosting:
4 oz cream cheese, softened
12 tablespoons of butter, softened
2-3 cups powdered sugar
2-3 tablespoons freeze dried strawberry powder
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions:
For the Cookies:
Preheat oven to 350F. In a small bowl stir the flour and baking powder together, set aside.
In a large mixing bowl add the sugar and lemon zest. Use your hands to work the zest into the sugar, releasing the oils.
Add the butter, and use an electric mixer to cream until fluffy. Add the egg, vanilla, and lemon juice and mix until creamy and well mixed.
Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until combined. Dough will be crumbly.
Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead until the dough comes together.
Roll dough to 1/4 inch thickness and cut out using cookie cutters. Place cut out cookies on a lined cookie sheet 1-2 inches apart and freeze for 5 minutes before baking.
Bake each batch 10-12 minutes. Allow to cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes and then move to a cooling rack.
For the Frosting:
Cream together the cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer until smooth. Add lemon juice and the powdered sugar, one cup at a time until fluffy and creamy.
Add a sprinkle of the strawberry powder and decorate the first few cookies. Add a little more strawberry powder and decorate a few more, gradually adding more powder to each batch, creating a gradual darker pink.
Cookies last up to a week stored in an air tight container in the fridge.